Tonight marked the third meeting between the Ice Wolves and the IceRays. Corpus is the only team in the South Division to have not beaten New Mexico in regulation. The Ice Wolves are coming off a split weekend against Topeka. Whereas, Corpus Christi just lost their 15th-consecutive game (0-14-1).
The first period started off very well for the Ice Wolves as they peppered Jeremy Forman with 15 shots. None of which though were able to find the back of the net. New Mexico also did a phenomenal job at keeping the IceRays at bay, as they only allowed four shots.
The middle period is when the scoreless affair finally ended, thanks to Philip Ekberg (9). His goal came 4:31 into the second period after his shot took a weird bounce and beat Forman. New Mexico added eight shots to their total, giving them 23 after 40 minutes. The IceRays had their fair share of moments in the period where it looked as if they were going to score, but Henrik Laursen stopped all 13 shots that were thrown at him. Giving the Ice Wolves a 1-0 lead heading into the final period of regulation.
Halfway into the third period, Logan Ommen (2) was able to sneak a puck past Laursen to end the goose egg for Corpus. There were plenty of chances on both ends of the ice but the score remained tied once the horn sounded. Sending the game into a 3-on-3 overtime for five minutes. Not only were goals even after three periods but as were the shots, 28-28.
Both teams had three shots in overtime, although neither was able to find the back of the net. So after a nail-biting OT the game headed to a shootout. The shootout wound up going six rounds with the game-winning goal going to Evan Carroll. Giving Corpus a 2-1 victory.
Henrik Laursen finished the night with 30 saves. It was the first win in two months for the IceRays. With the Ice Wolves earning a point tonight it brings their total to 23 (9-29-2-3). The IceRays improve to 14-26-3-3 (34pts). Game two will be played on Sunday at 3:05 p.m. CST. It will be the final game of the four-week road trip for the Ice Wolves. It will also be their final game at the American Bank Center this season.